Liminal. I once heard the word used as the title of a sermon series in southern California. While that preacher used it to reference a "state of being between," I've since learned that the word also refers to the idea of a threshold, specifically, "occupying a position at, or on both sides of, a boundary or threshold." It seems an apt word to describe what I felt as we spent time on a layover, half a world between our now past lives in Alabama and our future lives in Japan.

It was a weird feeling, really. We ended the lease on our apartment, moved out, and boarded a plane, realizing that we had no idea where we would be living when we got to Japan. Sure, we know that God has a place for us to live eventually, somewhere here in Japan. But that doesn't change the fact that we don't have a "home" yet. Perhaps more strange than that was the fact that we no longer had a home to return to. We couldn't go back if we wanted to. Basically, we are living "in between." The positive side is that we are on the threshold of something new.

It's times like this that I realize the importance of having an eternal perspective. The apostle Paul wrote that our citizenship is in heaven. So far I've lived in more residences than the number of years I've been alive (more than 33!). During this (yet another) season of transition, as I stand on the threshold of many unknowns, the reality of my eternal citizenship is becoming more and more important to me.